Recipes, Thoughts and Travel – Life in and Out of the Kitchen

Category Archives: dinner

Texas is good at a lot of things, but they miss the mark on anything buffalo (wings, hoagies, bites, etc.). I’ve really been missing that food since we moved here, and finally came up with a recipe that solves my cravings, sneaks in some veggies and can even be made gluten-free. It’s awesome and one of my go-to’s when I need some comfort food.

BUFFALO CHICKEN MEATLOAF (serves 3-4)

1 Lb. ground chicken

1/3 c. blue cheese dressing, plus more for dipping

4 Tbsp. Frank’s Red Hot (or your favorite hot sauce)

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 tsp. garlic salt

1 tsp. onion powder

3 scallions (whites and greens)

1 large stalk celery, diced (plus more stalks for serving on the side)

1 large carrot, peeled and shredded

1/2 c. almond meal (or flour if you prefer)

Preheat oven to 375.

Combine all ingredients except for the blue cheese and Frank’s Red Hot.

Annnnd, I’m back. What a year. For everything we’ve all been through in 2017, I’m really hopeful for everything ahead in 2018. As Nina Simone would say, it’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, and I’m feeling good.

This hearty winter salad helps. Freekeh serves as the base and is loaded with protein and fiber. Roast up some veggies (including a sweet potato), toast some almond slices, whip up a quick lemon-maple vinaigrette and toss it all together. This is awesome and filling on its own, but Brendan has eaten it for breakfast, warmed quickly and topped with a fried egg. And it’s good for you!! Anyone else need a detox after the holidays? Hell, anyone need a detox after the dumpster fire of 2017? Start here.

ROASTED VEGETABLE WINTER SALAD (serves 4)

1 cup freekeh, pre-cooked

1 lb. brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed

2 cups cauliflower, broken into florets (I had purple cauliflower on hand, which was so pretty in this, but any color will work)

1/4 c. almond slices

1/4 c. dried cranberries

Lemon-Maple Vinaigrette

1/4 cup EVOO

Juice of one lemon

1 tsp. pure maple syrup

salt & pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400.

In a small pot, bring one cup of freekeh (no need to rinse this, like you do with quinoa) and 2.5 cups of water to a boil. Cover and simmer about 20-25 minutes or until cooked. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork.

Freekeh

Toss brussels sprouts, sweet potato and cauliflower with a glug or two of EVOO and some kosher salt & fresh-cracked black pepper. Roast at 400 for about 25 minutes or until browned and tender.

To make the dressing, combine the lemon juice with the salt and pepper. Next, add the maple syrup and then whisk in the EVOO. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.

Heat a small saucepan over medium-high heat and add the almonds, flipping often, until golden brown – about 3 minutes. Keep an eye on these – they’ll go from perfect to perfectly burned in a span of about 30 seconds.

In a large bowl, combine the cooked freekeh, the roasted vegetables, toasted almonds, dried cranberries and the dressing. Mix everything together.

Ughhh, I love this so much. It’s like a giant spanikopita, which is one of my favorite foods in the world. It’s both healthy and indulgent enough, needs almost zero seasoning, and can be prepped the day before, then assembled after work for a quick meal that’s ready in no time flat.

32 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained really well

1.5 tbsp. EVOO

1 large vidalia onion

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp. dried dill

1/2 lemon, juiced

1/2 C. crumbled feta

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

2 eggs

One sheet puff pastry

1 egg (for egg wash on puff pastry)

1.Preheat oven to 375.

2.Heat the 1.5 TBSP EVOO over medium in a large saucepan.

3.Dice onion and mince garlic, then add to the saucepan and stir until soft and translucent.

4.Remove onion mixture from saucepan and set aside to cool.

5.Wring out as much liquid as possible from thawed spinach, using a cheesecloth, or in small fistfuls with your hands. This is key so you don’t have a soggy spinach pie.

6.In a large bowl, combine the spinach, the room-temperature garlic and onion mixture, the feta, nutmeg, salt, pepper, dill, lemon and two eggs. Mix well to combine. If you’re going to make this the day before, so the flavors really meld together, leave out the eggs until the next day.

7.Roll out the sheet of puff pastry according to directions, then line a standard-size pie pan with it.

8.Top the pastry with the spinach mixture, evenly spreading it around the pie pan.

9.Fold pastry over itself, then brush with the egg wash (use the remaining egg for this).

This was honestly one of the best meals I’ve made in a long, long time. First of all, it’s super easy. Second of all, it made our house smell amazing. Third of all, it’s bright and light and so delicious we both were practically licking the sauce from the plate. I couldn’t wait to have leftovers the next day.

4.Pat the chicken breasts dry and season with kosher salt and pepper on both sides. Add to the baking dish with the sauce, skin-side up.

5.Take the six quarters of unsqueezed lemon and tuck them among the chicken breasts.

6.Bake, uncovered, for about 30-40 minutes or until the chicken is done and the skin is light brown. If you use a meat thermometer and it indicates the chicken is done, but the skin isn’t brown and crispy, just crank up the broiler and cook for about 2 minutes, making sure not to burn it.

7.Remove, loosely tent with foil, then serve. We had this with quinoa and roasted veggies, and spooned the lemon sauce all over everything. So, so good.

Ok, to preface this – I am not “going gluten-free.” However, I’m half Sicilian, and I love pasta way too much. And I also have a wedding dress I need to fit into in seven months, so something’s got to be done. So for the past few weeks, I’ve been experimenting with gluten-free recipes during the week, and “cheating” during the weekends. It keeps me in check with what I’m consuming, especially down here in Texas, and the portion control piece of all of this is also working out better than I expected. After three months of indulging in our new city, it’s time to reign it back in. And it’s a testament to these recipes that Brendan had NO CLUE I’d decided to start eating, and cooking, gluten-free. These were seriously delicious.

Prep your setup: in one bowl, have the eggs. In another, larger bowl, combine the almond meal with the spices.

Using a fork (this will keep your hands from getting all breaded, themselves) dip the pieces of chicken first in the eggs, then on both sides in the almond meal, lightly pressing to make sure the almond meal forms a good coating on the chicken.

Spray a cooking sheet with cooking spray or rub some olive oil on it.

Place the “breaded” chicken on the baking sheet, then bake for 20-25 minutes, flipping once, until golden and chicken is cooked through.

Serve with a side of honey mustard – I made this by just combining dijon mustard with a little honey and a little mayo – and some green beans. So good.

Lasagnas are a labor of love, especially when you do them right. When I take the time to make one of these, especially when it’s entirely from scratch, I double the recipe and freeze another one, just because they take so much time and effort. And then, on days when NEPA misses breaking the record for coldest day ever by one degree, and I’ve spent the day before with a wicked stomach bug that made me feel like I was dying, barely slept because of it, woke up at 2.45am for a 4am taping of morning show (with Ryan Leckey, who, admittedly, I love) at the hospital, then coordinated five more interviews – one of which includes scrubbing up (?? in? what’s it called when you just observe) with a reporter and photographer for a VERY graphic, and incredibly advanced, knee replacement surgery – and am now waiting to connect the final interview of the day so I can just take a freaking nap already, do you know what I do? I take that second lasagna out of the freezer and start letting that beautiful thing defrost. This is homemade with love right here – my Mom’s meatsauce, noodles from scratch, a nutmeg-y bechamel, some kale and fresh parm…dinner’s going to be the best part of this day.

I know that “Healthy” and “Cheesy” don’t usually go together, but trust me, these do. Plus, veggies, which I’ve been trying to eat in some capacity at every meal. This winter has been unbelievably cold and snowy, and we’ve made some stick-to-your-ribs meals that come together pretty easily, warm you up really well and leave enough for lunch the next day, too. Here’s one of them.

If I could pick one food to eat for the rest of my life (pasta is a given), it would be these. I love dumplings, especially the really good ones. Unless you live in a city, good-quality dumplings are really hard to find – most of the ones I order around here are either too thick, not flavorful enough, or some sort of variation on Asian pierogies.

That said, these are fantastic. Perfect consistency, great filling, light and super tasty. Brendan and I made them together, and it was amazing how many of them we got out of 1 lb. of pork. I gave in and stuck to the basics with this recipe, but I’m already planning what version we’re going to make next. These were a really fun kitchen project, AND they froze really well too. Who needs city Chinese food?? Ok, me. I do. But when I can’t have it, this is a pretty great substitute.

CHINESE PORK DUMPLINGS (makes a ton. Freeze whatever you don’t make in an airtight container)

My mom had a pretty rough time throughout December, so before I went away for Christmas, my parents, my sister and I all made a Saturday afternoon lunch and just hung out for a while. My mom’s a vegetarian, and we all needed some comfort food, so this pasta and artichokes in a creamy tomato sauce was perfect. Everything tastes better when you eat it with your family. <3

These were the first thing Brendan ever made me, and they’re one of my very favorites. Meatballs are one of the best foods ever, but these are vegetarian, and they honestly stand up to the real thing. Plus, anytime I get Bren in the kitchen is a done deal. He’s an awesome cook.

MUSHROOM “MEATBALLS” (makes about 20 – recipe via allrecipes.com)

1 lb. white mushrooms, finely chopped

pinch salt

1 tbsp. butter

1/2 c. yellow onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 C. quick-cook oats

freshly grated parmesan cheese

1/2 C. bread crumbs

1/4 C. chopped flat-leaf parsley

2 eggs, divided

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

pinch cayenne pepper

pinch dried oregano

1 tbsp. EVOO

1. Finely chop mushrooms, then heat the 1 tbsp. EVOO in a large skillet over medium. Add mushrooms and a pinch of salt, cook and stir until the liquid has evaporated.

5. Mix in the oats, approx. 1/3 C. parmesan, bread crumbs, parsley and, when the mixture is cool, 1 egg. Add the salt pepper, cayenne pepper and oregano, then mix until combined. Stir in the other egg.

6. Heat oven to 450. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, then roll the mixture into little meatballs.

7. Bake for approx. 15 minutes or until mushrooms are golden brown. Eat alone or over pasta – these are the bomb.